Galaxy Digital Tokenizes $9 Million Stradivarius Violin For Loan

Michael Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital has tokenized a Stradivarius violin valued at $9 million as collateral for a loan.

According to a report by Bloomberg, the violin was made in 1708 and once owned by Russian Empress Catherine the Great. Crafted by the renowned Stradivari family, such instruments are often considered of the highest quality.

Galaxy Digital’s Multimillion Loan to Yat Siu

Galaxy lent the funds to Yat Siu, co-founder of Animoca Brands, who purchased the 316-year-old violin at an auction last year for over $9 million, according to statements from both Galaxy and Siu.

Galaxy will hold both the tokenized version of the instrument in the form of a nonfungible token (NFT) and the physical violin as collateral for the loan. The violin will be kept by a custodian in Hong Kong, and both parties must approve its removal.

The report stated that Galaxy and Siu did not disclose the exact terms or size of the loan, only stating that it was “in the millions.”

Galaxy Digital, which already offers loans through its trading and investment banking division Galaxy Global Markets, is now aiming to reach a new clientele. The violin loan marked an initial effort to attract clients benefiting from the increasing wealth generated by rising crypto prices.

MANTRA’s JP Mullin on RWA Tokenization

In a recent interview with Cryptonews.com, MANTRA Chain co-founder and CEO John Patrick Mullin discussed the potential and the inherent challenges of real-world-asset (RWA) tokenization.

Mullin described RWA tokenization as the process of bringing traditional assets into the digital economy. By tokenizing these assets, they can be traded and managed with greater efficiency and accessibility.

“Right now, I think the most popular is probably treasuries…U.S. treasuries on public blockchains,” said Mullin. “But that’s really just the tip of the iceberg. I think one of the things that a lot of people are focusing on is real estate… like there’s trillions of dollars.”